History: June 2009 Archives

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Iranians have reportedly starting protesting the Ahmadinejad regime by going to bazaars and not shopping.

However, that doesn't mean the rest of the revolution is noncommercial.

One popular item: t-shirts featuring Neda Agha-Soltan, the Iranian woman whose murder by Iranian security forces, caught on this YouTube video (more about which here), has made her an icon of the protest movement.

Pictured above: a Neda t-shirt sold on Facebook by an Iranian who pledges to give the proceeds to Neda's family if 400 shirts are sold, though judging from the comments not everyone is on board with this enterprise:


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The CafePress blog has also noted Neda tee phenomenon, highlighting a link between commerce and political speech:

While the Iranian government prohibits Neda's family and friends from having memorials in her honor and tries to locally silence the voices mourning her, the world is talking. And from our end, a T-shirt is worth 1,000 words.

In other words, let a thousand Neda t-shirts bloom!

And yes, the last one really is a Remembering Neda Dog T-Shirt. The photo proclaims "Made in the USA", and y'know, I don't doubt it.

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UPDATE:

Here's a new heated critique of the Facebook tee for commodifying Neda--another new shirt by PrestijFashion:


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Seminary Girls

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The documentary series Indie Sex offers a revealing look at how religious groups have shaped American popular entertainment. Among the movies featured: Seminary Girls, a not-safe-for-the-nineteenth-century-workplace classic from Edison Films.